It is such a pity that most of the Maori élites, politicians and academics, and their fellow travellers, regard themselves as a separate people. All Maori have more settler/colonist blood than Polynesian. They are fundamentally New Zealanders and have the same needs and interests as other Kiwis. I’m sure most New Zealanders with some Maori blood think the same. Governments both central and local, have looked after “Maori” excessively for decades and sadly this had led to separatism, tribalism and division.
It’s time to see ourselves as one nation. Pride in ethnicity is understandable whether it be Samoan, Tongan. Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Maori or whatever, but for all citizens of the country regardless of their origins, their first culture is Kiwi. Shane Reti, the likely next Minister of Health, once said that we should meet people’s needs on the basis of those needs not on their race.
Having a separate constituency on the Wellington Regional Council for “Maori” makes no sense. What will the Maori representative do that would be different from other regional councillors? All elections should be based on the democratic principle that people will be voted in on the basis of merit, not ethnicity. Wellington electors in the last local body elections voted in a part-Maori mayor because they obviously considered her the best person for the job.
There should be no separate Maori seats in parliament or separate places on local bodies. Governments have a responsibility to meet all their constituents needs as they are Kiwis with varying backgrounds, but a common milieu.
Roger Childs is a writer and freelance journalist. He is a former history and geography teacher, who wrote or co-authored 10 school textbooks. This article was first published HERE
Having a separate constituency on the Wellington Regional Council for “Maori” makes no sense. What will the Maori representative do that would be different from other regional councillors? All elections should be based on the democratic principle that people will be voted in on the basis of merit, not ethnicity. Wellington electors in the last local body elections voted in a part-Maori mayor because they obviously considered her the best person for the job.
There should be no separate Maori seats in parliament or separate places on local bodies. Governments have a responsibility to meet all their constituents needs as they are Kiwis with varying backgrounds, but a common milieu.
Roger Childs is a writer and freelance journalist. He is a former history and geography teacher, who wrote or co-authored 10 school textbooks. This article was first published HERE
6 comments:
Roger, this is Wellington. What did you expect?
The only place in the country to elect a new Green MP and a woke Leftie stronghold, even after 6 years of atrocious Labour-Greens government.
There's no getting through to some people. Of course, many work directly for the government so I suppose job preservation was a factor for some but Wellingtonians really do get what they deserve. Their mayor is a case in point.
"What will the maori reps do that others might not?" Indulge in endless obstructiveness. (Largely to gain notice and mana amongst fellow activists, which now includes many trace maori, and most of the young). Use the platform to inflict tikanga and tracts of show off te reo on the long suffering others, all as part of the imagine decolonisation (ie civilisation) doctrine embedded by Moana Jackson and accomplices.Propose endless try on maori names. Constantly plug for favourable race based treatments. Endlessly strive to repay colonists for supposed past wrongs (an intent as stated at the co governece Tupuna Maunga Authority hui in 2019)
BUT, it has been successive 'governments' since 1975 that CREATED and then facilitated this 'apartheid system' to flourish. Our 'democratic' government has been the creator and nurturer of this, therefore they are the PROBLEM.
It is now urgent to find a new and accurate way to define "Maori" which fits the current administrative situation in 2023.
This point was made at the recent ACC council meeting by former Minister, Councillor, Maurice Williamson. There, Maori seats were rejected by 11 to 9
- to the great chagrin of those pushing for this.
An updated definition of ethnicity is a fundamental issue - for eradicating privilege based on this factor.
Without this step, the current exercise of " giving away NZ each day " will be completed very fast.
Given the penchant for those with Maori ancestry listing their tribal affiliations maybe they should list their proportion of Maori genes too. That way the rest of NZ could understand what makes a person a Maori.
Separate systems create waste, they are harmful to peoples views of themselves, they are divisive. Just look at Europe that let in piles of people that see themselves as not being part of the Europe they fled to.
Apartheid is not a good system.
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